Girlie Weekend

I had a busy, busy weekend. A girlie weekend. I enjoyed every minute.

Friday night - Gina, Nancy, and I surprised our friend Janea with a Girls Night Out for her 30th birthday. These girls are truly my oldest and dearest friends. We had a blast. We started the night off making jewelry at a bead party - then a late dinner at Brio. It was relaxing, fun, and downright awesome. I love these girls and am so thankful that we have stayed friends for so many years.

Saturday was family day. Just as special. Dance class. T-Ball. Babysitting for very good friends. Home family time. Perfect.

Sunday was Robin's pamper shower. Kind of a tradition in my family to do a pamper day when someone is expecting baby #2. This was Robin's turn. Lunch at Oregano's (yuuuuummmy!) followed by pedicures. Just girl time. What a lovely day with my favorite girls. I am so lucky to have such a close-knit family. I love it!

Brady's Serious Questions

Recently Brady and I had a serious conversation. His choice. We were discussing birthdays. He was about to go to a birthday party for little girl Emily. Not just a birthday party - a party at Bounce Jungle. He thinks it is the coolest place on the planet. Here goes it:

Brady: Emily and Sarah have birthdays on the same day. Just like me and Cole. Our birthdays are on the same day.
Me: That's cool. Is Sarah having a birthday party, too?
Brady: Yeah. But, it's a Barbie party. Only girls. Well, one boy is going. Cameron.
Me: That's nice, Brady. They must be good friends. Don't worry, you'll have fun at Bounce Jungle.
Brady: Cameron has brown skin.
Me: What do you mean?
Brady: You know...His skin...is the color brown. Like, Tyiana's. Her skin is brown, too.
Me: That's nice, Brady. Is he your friend? Do you guys play tag? (Brady's favorite playground game)
Brady: Yeah. We're friends. We play at recess.
Me: That's nice, Brady. You have lots of friends.
Brady: Mom? How do you get brown skin?
Me: Well...you're just born that way, Buddy. Kind of cool, huh? It's kind of like how you were born with brown hair but some of your friends have blond hair.
Brady: Oh, okay. But, how do I get brown skin?
Me: Do you want brown skin, Brades?
Brady: Yeah.
Me: Sorry, Buddy. You can't. You weren't born with brown skin. You can't change that.
Brady: Oh, okay.

My thoughts??
I'm doing something right.
Either that - or, this just shows how much he looooves Rock Obama.
The End.

Bad Blogger, Bad Blogger!!

If I had a Blog Mom...

she'd tell me to go to timeout.

I deserve it.

I haven't been blogging.

My Aunt Karen reminded me this weekend.

(She's my #1 fan...remember??)

Totally my fault.

I've got about 5 post-its of things I want to blog about.

I seem to be watching tv...

and playing with the cuties...

and sleeping...

rather than blogging.

I miss blogging.

But, I feel so behind?

So much to write about.

So little time to write.

Why can't blogging be my full time job?

That would be awesome.

I'd love it.

Going back to timeouts.

Isn't that a cute mat above?

I always wanted something like that -

but, I always found other things to buy instead.

If you want it -

you can get it here.

I just use the corner.

The cuties mostly think it's funny.

I sometimes use their bedrooms.

But bedrooms are too fun.

Anyways...I promise I'm back.

Did you hear that Aunt Karen???

I'm baaaaaaaaaaaack!!

Arizona Does Have a Fall

I love Halloween.

I love pumpkins.

I love dressing the cuties up in costumes.

I love that Halloween means that AZ is finally cooling down.

I love that it is now acceptable to burn a Harvest-y smelling candle.

I love candy.

I love that I now get to make little baggies of Halloween treats for Brady and his class.

I love that it is getting closer to the holidays...

which means closer to Kris Kringle time!

I love taking the cuties to a pumpkin patch.

I love Shnepf Farms.

We go every year.

Well every year, but last year.

This past weekend - we all went again.

Yep - all of the Griswold clan.

This year was extra - extraordinary.

Randomly, we ran into the rest of the original Griswold clan.

Totally accidental.

Totally fun.

Totally going to repeat this next year.

Did I mention I love this time of year?

Roller coaster time!!!

I think Brady and Brad literally rode it a gajillion times!

Ash, Tara & their girls...LOVED IT!

Somehow, we snuck Lilbugs on...

she absolutely looooooved it!

After 6:30pm - the train ride turns HAUNTED....

no worries - everyone had a blast!

Awww...a family picture

with pieces of dust flying all around.

Another Happy, Happy Birthday

And, this one goes to...

Brett Babcock!!

Or, as Lil would say,

Uncle Bretty!!

My goodness have we known you a long time.

We love you tons!!

Happy Birthday!

Another 5 Year Old!!

Well, we've got another 5 year old in the family...

Hayden Osborn!!

(isn't he a cutie pants??)

Happy Birthday Buddy!

We miss you tons

and hope your birthday

was super duper special!

You're the best!

Love,

Uncle Bryan, Aunt Dawn

Brady & Lily

Nanny's Do

My mom has trained hair. Hair that she has seriously trained to do what she wants it to do...every time. Never a bad hair day - the hair always listens because she has been training it for years and years.

Step 1: Rollers (if too hot, stick t.p. in there)

Step 2: Flip upside down and fluff

Step 3: Flip up head

Step 4: Lots and Lots (and lots) of hairspray.

Preferably Aqua Net.

Lily has learned from the master. Thank you Nanny!

It Was My Honor

I am not good at checking my personal email. I take that back...I'm good at it when I am expecting emails. But, when I'm not...I can go 2 weeks + without going to my yahoo account. I don't have access to outside email accounts while at work...so that probably accounts for some of my problem.

Today...while the cuties were napping, I decided to check in on my yahoo account. Thankfully I did. I was pleasantly surprised with this lovely email from my Aunt Mary Lou and Uncle Bobby.

Dawn,

Uncle Bobby and I wanted to thank you for the wonderful dedication on your blog for our 50th Wedding Anniversary and for all of the beautiful comments and memories from everyone.

Our family has something special that other people wish they had. We are a family that is always there for one another in the good times and the bad. We all share in the ups, downs, joys, and sorrows together as Family. We have had the perfect role models, Pop and Nan who were there for us. They taught us how important "FAMILY" is. I always remember how Pop's brothers and sisters always said how lucky George and Viola were to have such a close knit family and they were always there for each other. This family always has the love and support of each other. At one time we were the younger generation and now the roles have changed and I know with Nan and Pop's inspiration our families circle of life will continue with the next generation.

I just want to say that I'm so happy to be part of this family and look forward to spending the weekend with my sisters in Chicago to reminisce, laugh and enjoy all my sister's company.

Uncle Bob and I have always told Mary Lou and Bobby that friends will come and go in your life but your family is always there for you.

Uncle Bob has been so touched by your blog and everyone's comments. I think he has read it everyday at least 3 times a day.

Thank you Dawn again and may God bless our FAMILY today and always. And thank you Nan and Pop for guidance and love for all of us.

All our love always,
Uncle Bobby and Aunt Mary Lou

p.s. Please tell the Hottie and the Cuties that we are so sorry we took up so much of your time with the blog. Thank you and we love you for it!

Seriously....Aunt Mare and Uncle Bob are right. We do have a one of a kind family. One that is so very close, best friends, family, everything. I know the closeness and unity is somewhat odd. We always remind ourselves that we are NOT the norm. But, we love it.

I really have no words. I want to thank you both very much for such a lovely email. It absolutely meant the world.

Why Do I Blog?

I loved my Birthday Blog Contest SOOO Much! I thought it was fun to read about my die-hard readers. It really got me thinking about why I blog....

So here it goes.

A little over a year ago - my sister, Ashley, had been talking to me about her latest obsession. She was stalking several "moms of multiples" blogs. Hmm...this piqued my interest and I soon began to follow suit. Ashley has this amazing memory and could literally remember each child's name, the family name, and the mom's name, key notes about the blog (pretty much everything)....I on the other hand, seemed to have the memory that just blurred the "multiples" families all together. It made for some interesting conversations between the two of us.

Funny...that was just about 18 months ago. Blogging had been going on for several years...and I was JUST getting introduced to such a phenomenon. I continued my random blog surfing and little by little, became more and more intrigued to start one of my own.

The cool thing was - it seemed tons of people had blogs. You could google people and many times, their blog would pop up. I began browsing blogs on sewing and photography and cooking...they're all out there, you just have to look.

A few months later, I came across this flyer while going through the drive-thru at my local Chick-fil-A. The flyer talked about this family that was fighting and praying for a young couple with four children, Stephanie and Christian Nielson. The couple had recently been involved in a plane crash and were fighting for their lives.

I went home. Googled their names (see how stalkerish I can be??). And, found Nie Nie and CJane. I spent the rest of the night reading and reading and reading through their blogs. Getting to "know" them. I know - sounds absurd.

The outreach to this family was unbelievable. I found it empowering how both of these blogs showed woman that...pretty much...put it all out there for everyone. Beliefs. Parenting. Views. Everything.

Did I agree with them 100%? Absolutely not. But, did I respect their points of view? Definitely.

About a week later - Campbell Cuties was born.

I really didn't know how long this would last. I'm pretty...I guess I would say - open/honest/liberal....and probably most of the times, the Hottie does not agree with me. But - I guess that's who I am. I figure if people don't like what I write...or pictures I post, don't read. I know very well that I have come across waaaaay too many blogs that I could not stand - I just don't return. That's the good part about free will.

After a few months, I had a couple readers...mainly Robin, Ashley, and Aunt Karen. They are what kept me blogging. Their encouragement...that's what kept me going.

So - thank you to:
1) Ashley...for introducing me to this blogging world.
2) Nie Nie for inspiration.
3) And...Aunt Karen and Robin - for the encouragement to keep going.

Oh - and it definitely helps that I now have family members blogging!!
Woot! Woot!
That's the best part! More blogs to read.
And, I don't have to feel like a stalker reading theirs...
I know them!

p.s....just because I didn't get to enter the contest (and I love contests!!) - I'll give all my answers to the questions, too:

1) My favorite posts are definitely my Friendly Face Interviews. I really need to bring those back!! Anyone want to be next? Also, I loved my 30th birthday post (because my birthday rocked!!) And, my other favorite is the Girl's Spa Getaway - I finally got to take a girls' trip with my mom and sisters and it was super fun and special!

2) My name is dawn and I am a blog stalker. The blogs I stalk daily are a)All my family's blogs: Ashley, Robin, April b) Em's c) Krystal's d) Nie Nie and CJane and e) 71toes.blogspot.com.

3) Recipes...lucky I have a lot of family and friends that regularly cook. Several years ago, one of my friends, Janea, gave me a white 3-ring binder with recipes for Christmas. I can say we have used almost all of them. Our favorite (and the Cuties' favorite) is:

Ranch Chicken Pasta

Ingredients:
1 box spiral pasta
1 lb (or 6-7 tenders) of Chicken
1 oz. package of DRY ranch salad dressing mix (I've used Kroger brand and it's perfect!)
1 tbsp. butter
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 - 3/4 cup green onions
1/2 - 3/4 cup red pepper
1 cup sour cream
2 tbsp. milk
Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Cook pasta, drain, and keep warm. Place chicken and 2 tbsp. of dry ranch dressing mix in a Ziploc bag and shake to coat. (I use about 1 1/2 tbsp.) In a skillet, melt butter until sizzling and add chicken and garlic. Cook over med-high heat, stirring occasionally, until chicken is no longer pink. Reduce heat to medium. Stir in green onions and red peppers - cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through (about 5 minutes). In a medium bowl, stir together sour cream, milk, and remaining salad dressing mix. Stir in hot cooked pasta. Spoon pasta onto serving plate and top with chicken mixture (I normally just mix it all together) Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese...and Voila!

4) No need to comment with my name - just try out the recipe - it's DEEE-LICIOUS!

5) Read above to find out why I started a blog AND why I've continued.

Fun Times with Family Visitors

Well...the in-laws have come and gone.

What a weekend. We sure fit a lot into their visit.

And, boy oh boy, did we ever have fun.

Especially the cuties.

We went to Jerome, Sedona, a Canyon Lake boat tour, a lake picnic....

and lots and lots of eating.

Yum!

The cuties are missing "Ganpa" and "Rie"

Thanks guys!!

We really had the most fun!

Special Vistors

Grandpa and Rie are visiting.

We are VERY excited.

Oh, and Lil played photographer...

Who's Underwear are Those??

The other night the Hottie asked me, "Were you the first to fall asleep at the slumber party??"

Confused I turned around to find him laughing. with the freezer open. and this what was inside:

Oh, Lilbugs....

The Winner Is....

First off - I would like to thank everyone for entering my contest. I truly got such a kick out of reading all the comments and "trash talk" over the last week. I was literally laughing to tears many times.

Secondly...I love the recipes. I have already added them to my recipe box. THANKS!!!

And, thirdly...I am totally a bad contest directions writer. I had hoped everyone would write a separate comment for each of the tasks. Reading over my directions - that is so NOT how I explained it. No problem...I just had to separate out each entry on my own.

Because everyone that entered (well, maybe not everyone) was very concerned on how I was going to pick the winner - I will do my best in explaining the process I took:

1. I went through every entry and separated out each individual "entry." For example, in comment #1 (Ashley) wrote about 2 of the "chances" - 1) why she blogs, and 2) her favorite post. So - that is entry #1 and #2 and they both go to Ashley. In comment #2 (Heidi) she wrote about 4 of the chances - 1) shout out to Ashley (Ash got the entry), 2) why she blogs, 3) blogs she stalks, 4) her favorite post, and 5) a recipe. So - Ashley got entry #3 and Heidi got entries #4-7. Lastly, since the 3rd comment was Ashley giving a shout out to Heidi...Heidi also got entry #8.
2. Made a list of each individual entry, in order from the comments.
3. Went to Random.org.
4. Entered the numbers of entries - minimum and maximum (1-45).
5. Random.org picked the winning entry.

Reading over this - it is a bit confusing...SORRY!

Here are the list of entries:
1. Ashley
2. Ashley
3. Ashley
4. Heidi
5. Heidi
6. Heidi
7. Heidi
8. Heidi
9. Robin
10. Robin
11. Robin
12. Ashley
13. Robin
14. Robin
15. Ashley
16. Aunt Karen
17. Aunt Karen
18. Ashley
19. Aunt Karen
20. Ashley
21. Ashley
22. Robin
23. Aunt Karen
24. Aunt Karen
25. Ashley
26. Ashley
27. Aunt Karen (she got one for asking to win)
28. Ashley
29. Ashley (she got one since she was the first to comment)
30. Aunt Karen
31. Krystal
32. Krystal
33. Ashley
34. Heidi
35. Krystal
36. Krystal
37. Krystal
38. April
39. April
40. April
41. Ashley
42. April
43. Ashley
44. Ashley

45. Ashley

Whew....that was exhausting. If I missed one - or am off by one...I sincerely apologize. But...I'll blame it on fate.

Now...what you've been waiting for...

The Winner

of the Campbell Cutie

First Birthday Blog Contest

IS

None other than.....

Whoop Whoop!!

Congratulations Ashley!!!

Happy Birthday Blog!!

It's official. My blog is 1 year old today. I cannot believe it. I still remember sitting here at this very same computer 1 year ago trying to figure out just what I needed to do to start a blog. So many things I worried about -

what to name it?

blogspot or wordpress?

ugh...how do i get those pictures to center properly?

is that all the font choices?

html...please come back to me...the little that i know.

how can my blog be cute?

and funny?

and me?

what should i write about?

does anyone even care what i write?

These are all things I still periodically think about. I truly have found that my blog is my journal. My free thoughts, wants, and desires. I write about a lot...probably a lot more than I should. But, I'm pretty much an open book - take it or leave it. I have been able to voice my thoughts about everything...the cuties, the hottie, our daily activities, politics, my liberalisms, celebrations....you name it - I've probably talked about it.

Wow. One year. Being that I do seem to jump in with both feet in everything I do - I knew that I would love it. But...I really never thought I'd keep going. And now...I can't imagine stopping.

One year down...

Happy Birthday campbellcuties.blogspot.com - you have literally been a very therapeutic venting ground. Thank you!

p.s....have you joined my blog contest???

you only have until midnight tonight.

GOOD LUCK!